For EU-citizens or people with a permanent residence permit in Hungary: 

Please note that if you are a citizen of the EU or hold a permanent residence permit in Hungary, you are required to apply on the same website as Hungarian citizens. The necessary information is published on the Faculty website every year in January. Link: https://tatk.elte.hu/en/content/admission.t.9194?m=552 

You can apply online, by filling in a form. The documents needed are a master’s degree (or a degree equivalent to that), a language exam (at least level B2) obtained in any living language. The language exam has to be state recognised. Please find the list here: https://nyak.oh.gov.hu/doc/honositas/honositas_tabla1.asp?strID=AAangol   

The language exam may be replaced with a certificate of secondary or tertiary studies conducted in a foreign language (e.g. a high school diploma in your country’s official language).

Please do not write your ELTE e-mail address on the application form if you have one. After graduating from your master’s studies, your ELTE mailbox will be closed, and we will not be able to contact you. Please do not change the address provided without notifying the Doctoral School.

For non-EU citizens: 

Please find detailed information on our PhD programmes and the admission procedure via the following link: https://www.elte.hu/en/doctoral-school-of-sociology 

Here, you will find comprehensive details about the program structure, application requirements, and important deadlines.

If you are interested in scholarship funding, currently, two scholarships are available for third country applicants (without a permanent residence permit in Hungary):

• Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship: https://stipendiumhungaricum.hu/   

• Hungarian Diaspora Scholarship: https://diasporascholarship.hu/en/ 

If you decide to apply for a scholarship, please review the eligibility criteria and application deadlines on the relevant scholarship websites. Applications must be submitted through the appropriate application portals within the designated periods. Please note that neither of the scholarships above are managed by ELTE. They are provided by independent foundations, whose deadlines may be very different from the deadline published on the Faculty website. 

Please do not write your ELTE e-mail address on the application form if you have one. After graduating from your master’s studies, your ELTE mailbox will be closed, and we will not be able to contact you. Please do not change the address provided without notifying the Doctoral School.
 

For EU-citizens or people with a permanent residence permit in Hungary: 

In order to ensure that you can apply for a self-funded place, too, you need to submit two applications, one for a scholarship, the other for a self-funded place. If you fail to submit the second application, you will only be able to apply next year. Submitting two applications means paying the application fee twice.

For non-EU citizens without a permanent residence permit in Hungary: 

As the scholarships available for you are not provided by the University but by independent foundations, the process of obtaining a scholarship is separated from the University admission process. Consequently, if you are admitted to a doctoral programme, but the foundation decides not to provide you with a scholarship, you may still start your doctoral studies as a self-funded student. There is no need to submit a second application form.
 

It is possible to choose a research topic from among the ones proposed on the Faculty website. You can find them listed on the websites of each doctoral programme respectively and connected to the supervisors’ names on the website Doktori.hu. 

It is possible to apply with a research topic of your own, as long as it proves to be relevant in the field of Social Sciences. You can search the Faculty website for a supervisor, as you can find their names, research fields, and e-mail addresses there. Please write an e-mail to the instructor selected. If you have difficulties, the programme secretaries can help you.

No. You can apply and be admitted without a supervisor. However, having a supervisor is an advantage at the entrance exam. If you are admitted without a supervisor, it is mandatory to find one until the beginning of the exam period (ideally in the first two months of the first semester).

Several students have supervisors from other institutions. Supervisors are only expected to have an academic degree (e.g. PhD). There is no need to sign a contract with the institution of the supervisor.

Admission is a very long process, which takes months. You will be notified in the second half of July the latest. If you have applied for a Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship at the same time, Tempus Foundation (which provides the scholarship) will notify you earlier about a prospective scholarship, usually in May. Please note that they are completely independent from the University, and their decision regarding the scholarship does not affect the success of your admission procedure to the Doctoral School.

In the summer, every student will receive an e-mail about the day of enrolment. A week before the enrolment, you will also be sent a reminder and information about the exact date and time, as well as the necessary documentation. You will receive your timetable at the same time. Please check your Spam folder regularly, too. The week before the enrolment, your timetable will also appear in Neptun.

If you cannot be present at the enrolment, you can enrol through another authorised person. However, you will be expected to present yourself by the end of September. You will also be expected to attend the classes in person. Attending classes online during the Study and research phase is only possible in exceptional cases, with the permission of the programme director.